Hurricane Harvey blows sugar prices up

Hurricane Harvey is indirectly the cause of the rising sugar price. White sugar on the Liffe in London rose by almost 31% on Thursday, August 2, while raw sugar in the US was up 3,4%.

As refineries in Houston had to close due to the hurricane, gasoline prices are rising. Also that of the Brazilian oil company Petrobras. This, in turn, sets the ethanol market in motion, which competes with gasoline. Since a lot of sugar is converted into ethanol, the upward pressure on sugar increases.

Market trend is turning
That coincides with Brazil's readiness to ramp up ethanol production and cut sugar production. In addition, the sugar cane harvest in India may be delayed by wet conditions.

All in all, sufficient factors to turn the market trend from neutral to positive.

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